Chapter 236: Different from what I imagined
Inside the main room.
Old Zhao and Zhao Dashan accompanied Old Wu for tea.
The men here are drinking tea. Boss Wu took a sip and only found it fragrant and mellow, but he couldn't taste any other deeper flavors.
He looked around the lobby and casually asked, "When was this building built? It's quite grand."
"This house is just so-so, with mud bricks on all four walls. How can it be worthy of a ninth-rank lady's status?" Old Zhao sighed smugly. "When the family makes money in the future, we must raise the money to rebuild this house with blue bricks. That would be truly impressive."
Old Wu was somewhat astonished: "Such a big house, made of blue bricks, it must cost at least a hundred taels of silver... Wait a minute, Uncle Zhao, you just said that the Ninth Rank Lady, is that the Lady Sui whom the Emperor personally conferred the title of?
The news spread like wildfire throughout Lijia Gou. It was said that a person from Dahe Village was granted an official position by the Emperor for discovering ratooning rice. He was dressed in fine silks and satins, wearing a jade crown and gold hairpins, and his whole body was adorned with jewels. Everyone in the village had to kneel and kowtow to him. He was even more imposing than Lord Shen from the county. The people in their village also wanted to come and see the spectacle, but they were afraid that they would have to kneel when they saw Lady Sui, so they dared not come. However, the rumors became more and more outrageous.
Now that they had arrived at Dahe Village, upon hearing Old Man Zhao mention the words "Ninth-Rank Lady," Old Man Wu finally remembered to ask about it.
"Your daughter's mother-in-law, Da Shan's biological mother, is the Imperial Consort Sui, bestowed with the title by the Emperor!" Old Man Zhao boasted proudly. "You have no idea how generous the Emperor is. Not only did he grant her a title, but he also bestowed upon her an official robe and an official hat. Tsk tsk, wearing those two things makes her look incredibly impressive. Our Zhao family is truly blessed to receive an imperial decree..."
Wu Laoda was completely stunned.
His daughter's mother-in-law, Zhao Chengshi, that shrewish woman, has actually become Lady Sui?!
Good heavens, does that mean his daughter has any chance of survival in the Zhao family?
When the Zhao family was poor, Zhao Chengshi was arrogant and haughty. Last year, when they were discussing marriage, the Wu family was so angry that they almost vomited blood.
Now that the Zhao family has prospered, the Wu family remains the same. Who knows how they will torment his daughter!
Although daughters are not as precious as sons, they are still the flesh and blood of the Wu family, and they cannot be bullied by the Zhao family like this!
Old Wu suddenly stood up.
At this moment, the child in the inner room started crying loudly.
Madam Wen came out from inside, muttering, "The milk supply is still not enough; this little girl is probably starving..."
As he spoke, he walked towards the kitchen and took out a small bowl of warm goat milk from the pot.
Old Wu asked blankly, "What is this?"
“It’s from a female goat,” Zhao Dashan said, scratching his head. “My mother was worried that Hui Niang wouldn’t have enough milk after giving birth, so she bought a female goat more than a month ago and put it at home. I didn’t expect it to come in so handy.”
It is common for women in the village to be malnourished and have insufficient breast milk.
In ordinary farming families, if there is no breast milk, they will feed the child rice water or millet porridge. Goat milk is something they would never even dare to dream of.
Wu Laoda sat down, his feelings complicated.
Old Zhao took a puff of his pipe: "The river has just risen, there aren't any fish to be seen, so there's no way to make crucian carp soup. This stuff is great for promoting lactation... Dashan, if you still don't have enough milk tomorrow, go to Hekou County and see if they sell crucian carp. No matter how expensive, you have to buy one..."
Old Wu was stunned for a moment again.
Because of the recent drought, many small rivers are devoid of fish, which has led to a surge in fish prices, making them more expensive than pork.
At this time of year, if you go to Hekou County to buy fish, a single crucian carp would probably cost thirty or forty coins. He couldn't earn that much even if he carried heavy loads at the dock all day...
The Zhao family has really prospered... However, it seems they haven't mistreated Hui Niang as he thought; the Zhao family seems to treat Hui Niang quite well...
Old Wu and his wife were lost in their own thoughts, and soon it was time to eat.
The dining room was large, with two tables set up: one for men and one for women and children. The dishes on both tables were the same.
Today is a celebratory feast, so we're having celebratory noodles. The side dishes prepared for the noodles are: stir-fried greens, braised dishes, boiled eggs, a bowl of pickles, and a large bowl of celebratory noodles for each person.
When Cao Yingying and Chunhua served the noodles, the three members of the Wu family were all stunned.
The noodles were made from wheat flour!
It's topped with a mushroom and minced meat sauce!
The white noodles and the fragrant meat sauce are a delicacy that they can't even afford to eat during the Chinese New Year!
There was also a dish of braised dishes on the table, all meat!
Another plate of eggs, cut in half, was placed on a large plate. The yolks were a bright orange-yellow, making one's mouth water.
Wu Xiaochui swallowed hard. In his fifteen years of life, he had never seen anything so delicious!
He thought his second sister was suffering at the Zhao family's house. He originally wanted to support her today, but he found that his second sister was living a much better life than him!
"What are you waiting for? Eat!" Cheng Wanwan said with a smile. "Little Hammer, you're a bit thin. Eat more; there's still plenty left in the pot."
Wu Xiaochui lowered his head and started eating noodles, slurping them down in big gulps. In the blink of an eye, a whole bowl of noodles was gone.
Cheng Wanwan picked up half an egg for him and a few slices of braised meat: "Why are you only eating noodles and not vegetables?"
Wu Xiaochui glanced at the others at the table, all eating slowly and politely, while he was the only one who finished a large bowl in an instant. His face suddenly turned red, and he felt very embarrassed.
He lowered his head, pretending to eat braised food to hide his embarrassment.
He was stunned after taking just one bite. This meat was so delicious! My God, it was the best thing he had ever eaten!
He finished the meat in the bowl in one go, and also swallowed half an egg whole.
Cheng Wanwan knew the child was starving. When she first came to Dahe Village, her four children were in the same state. She remembered that on their first meal, the four boys ate even faster than Wu Xiaochui, as if they wanted to swallow the whole table.
She stood up and said with a smile, "I'll go get you another bowl of noodles."
"No, no need!" Wu Xiaochui quickly snatched the bowl back. "I'm full, really!"
Cheng Wanwan said gently, "This is your second sister's house, don't be shy, there's still plenty left in the pot, you can eat as much as you want..."
"Really, you don't need to..."
Wu Xiaochui's face turned red.
He can't stand up for his second sister, but he can't afford to lose face.
He tried to pull the bowl hard, and Cheng Wanwan held on tightly as well. The two of them pulled and tugged at each other, and suddenly, Wu Xiaochui's face turned pale, and he grabbed his left arm.
Cheng Wanwan was startled: "What happened?"
Aunt Wu quickly put down her chopsticks and came over: "This kid brought this on himself. He got into a fight last time and broke his arm. He's been recuperating at home for almost three months and it's still not fully healed. He can't do any heavy work."
Zhao Dashan immediately stood up: "Who did you fight with? How did you get so badly injured?"
“In the spring, your father-in-law found Xiaochui a job as an apprentice to a bricklayer in the next village. It wasn’t for the money, but so that Xiaochui could learn a skill and earn some money to support his family by building houses. But unexpectedly, the boy disobeyed and got into a fight.” Aunt Wu sighed. “This boy has a fiery temper and can’t stand the slightest grievance. After the fight, the job was canceled, and he’s been staying at home recovering from his injuries. Not only can he not do anything, but people also laugh at him.”
Wu Xiaochui said with his neck stiff, "A group of them were harassing a girl who was passing by. I couldn't stand it, so I fought with them. Anyway, I don't think I did anything wrong!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
